# Leonard Lee

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{{for multi|the English businessman|Leonard Pelham Lee|the actor|Robert Fuller (actor)}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Leonard Lee [CM](/source/Order_of_Canada)
|birth_date={{birth date|1938|7|17}}
|birth_place=[Wadena, Saskatchewan](/source/Wadena%2C_Saskatchewan), Canada
| death_date ={{death date and age|2016|7|7|1938|7|17}}
| death_place=[Ottawa](/source/Ottawa), Ontario, Canada
|alma_mater={{plainlist|
*[Royal Roads Military College](/source/Royal_Roads_Military_College)
*[Queen's University](/source/Queen's_University_at_Kingston)
}}
|occupation=Businessman
|known_for=Founder of Lee Valley Tools
}}
'''Leonard G. Lee''' [CM](/source/Order_of_Canada) (July 17, 1938 &ndash; July 7, 2016) was a Canadian [entrepreneur](/source/entrepreneur) and founder of [Lee Valley Tools](/source/Lee_Valley_Tools) and Canica Design. Lee was born in 1938 in Wadena, Sask., and grew up in a log cabin without electricity or running water.<ref name="Ottawa Citizen obit">{{Cite news |author= Meghan Hurley |date=July 7, 2016 |url=https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/leonard-lee-founder-of-lee-valley-tools-dies |title=Leonard Lee, founder of Lee Valley Tools, dies |work=Ottawa Citizen |access-date=2017-09-13}}</ref>

He received a diploma in civil engineering from [Royal Roads Military College](/source/Royal_Roads_Military_College) and a [Bachelor of Economics](/source/Bachelor_of_Economics) degree in 1963 from [Queen's University](/source/Queen's_University_at_Kingston).<ref name="Ottawa Citizen obit" /> He worked for the federal government for sixteen years as a [topographical](/source/topography) surveyor, member of the [Canadian Foreign Service](/source/Department_of_Foreign_Affairs_and_International_Trade) and civil servant in the [Department of Industry](/source/Industry_Canada).

In 1978, he founded Lee Valley Tools, a Canadian woodworking and gardening tools mail-order business which has since grown into a multimillion-dollar enterprise. In 1985, he founded Veritas Tools. In 1991, he founded Algrove Publishing.<ref name="hist">
{{Citation
  | first = Paul
  | last = Lima
  | title = Retooling: The Reinvention of Leonard Lee
  | date = January 2006
  | publisher = [CanadaOne](/source/CanadaOne)
  | url = http://www.canadaone.com/ezine/jan06/leonard_lee.html
  }}</ref> In 1998, with his son Robin running Lee Valley Tools, Lee started a new business, Canica Design, a medical/surgical instrument company, headquartered in [Almonte, Ontario](/source/Almonte%2C_Ontario).

In 2002, he was made a Member of the [Order of Canada](/source/Order_of_Canada) for "being a successful entrepreneur."<ref>[http://www.gg.ca/honours/search-recherche/honours-desc.asp?lang=e&TypeID=orc&id=8000 Order of Canada] {{webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20070930041554/http://www.gg.ca/honours/search-recherche/honours-desc.asp?lang=e&TypeID=orc&id=8000 |date=2007-09-30 }}</ref> In 2007, he was granted an honorary degree from the [Royal Military College of Canada](/source/Royal_Military_College_of_Canada) in [Kingston, Ontario](/source/Kingston%2C_Ontario). In 2011, he was granted an honorary doctorate from the [University of Ottawa](/source/University_of_Ottawa). Lee died on July 7, 2016, from effects of [vascular dementia](/source/vascular_dementia).<ref name="Ottawa Citizen obit" /><ref>{{cite news |date=July 7, 2016 |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/leonard-lee-obit-1.3669286 |title=Lee Valley Tools founder Leonard Lee dies |publisher=CBC}}</ref>

==Bibliography==
*''The Complete Guide to Sharpening''. Taunton Press, 1995. {{ISBN|1-56158-067-8}} (hard cover) {{ISBN|1-56158-125-9}} (soft cover).

==References==
<references />

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Leonard}}
Category:Canadian businesspeople
Category:Members of the Order of Canada
Category:Queen's University at Kingston alumni
Category:Deaths from dementia in Canada
Category:Deaths from vascular dementia
Category:1938 births
Category:2016 deaths

{{Canada-business-bio-stub}}

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Leonard Lee](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonard_Lee) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonard_Lee?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.